COZENS, JOHNSON SABRES FIRST ROUND SELECTIONS
By Warren Kozireski — (Cozens Pictured Above, Photo by Koz) —
Buffalo went for one forward with size and one offensive defenseman with an NHL pedigree as the first round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft in Vancouver concluded.
6’3”, 183 lb. center Dylan Cozens fell to the Sabres with the seventh overall selection and Ryan Johnson, whose father, Craig, played ten NHL seasons with St. Louis, Los Angeles, Anaheim, Toronto and Washington and is the current Development Coach for the Los Angeles Kings, was taken with the 31st and final selection of the first round.
Cozens becomes the inaugural first round selection from the Yukon Territories in Canada and had a massive 34 goal-50 assist season in 68 games with Lethbridge in the Western Hockey League. He was ranked as high as fifth by some draft boards.
“It’s so exciting and such an unbelievable moment; it’s something that I’ve worked for my whole life and now I know that a whole new journey has just begun, Cozens said to the large Buffalo media contingent.
“I’m so happy to represent the people from the Yukon and so happy to be from there. There is definitely pressure with so many people that want to see me succeed and I didn’t want to let them down.
“It always felt like a far-fetched dream and not really achievable, but I believed that I could make this happen one day. All the thoughts growing up were about this moment and knowing that it only happens once, I want to enjoy it as much as I can. There has been so much work out int this moment and so much sacrifice from so many different people to help me get to this point.”
Johnson was born and raised in the Los Angeles area when his dad was playing there and came through the Jr. Ducks system before jumping to Sioux Falls of the United States Hockey League this past year.
In 54 games, the 6’0”, 170 lb. left shot netted six goals with 19 assists and added eight points in 12 postseason contests as the Stampede won the Clark Cup championship. The University of Minnesota commit is known for his elite skating ability among blueliners.
“I think I grew a lot defensively (this past season) and really found my game,” Johnson said post-selection. “Winning the Clark Cup was unbelievable and a great experience. Winning is fun and the culture and a championship team.
“The people in Buffalo need to know that I work hard and I want to help the team; my work ethic is the main thing. Anything can happen at the draft and I’m just grateful to be a part of this organization.”
Sabres General Manager Jason Botterill summarized what the scouting staff saw in Johnson.
“Similar characteristics to Dylan (Cozens). Very good athlete; very good skater; has the ability to play well in the defensive zone against other team’s top players and also has puck-moving ability and I think when we talk about how our team wants to play when we’re successful, it’s that our defenseman join the rush and get pucks up to our talented forwards and we really feel that Ryan fits the bill.”
